Bosnian teen's 11-year journey to rebuild his face is near completion thanks to generosity of Scottish people

11:10, 9 May 2014

ByScotland Now

SCOTS helped raise funds for Stefan Savic, who was born with a condition called Tessier cleft, to receive life-changing surgeries to rebuild his face.

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Gareth Iwan Jones/SWNS.com

Wayne Ingram, who launched a fresh appeal to help Stefan return to the UK, with Stefan

A BOSNIAN teenager's long journey to rebuild his face is almost complete, thanks to the generosity of Scots.

Stefan Savic is now only two operations away from completion of treatment after more than £15,000 was raised by Scottish people so he could return to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital and have more life-changing surgery.

Surgeon David Dunaway, who was once a consultant at Glasgow’s Canniesburn Hospital, fixed the 14-year-old’s upper jaw, palate and nose.

And the kind medics waived their fee, which would have been more than £10,000.

Stefan was born with a condition called Tessier cleft, which left him with a 2in-wide hole in his head, no proper nose and a lump between his eyes.

His rare and severe facial disfigurement touched the hearts of soldiers from the 1st Battalion the Highlanders and the 9th/12th Lancers when they met him in his native country in 2003.

Scots helped raise £85,000 for Stefan to come to the UK for surgery to start the rebuilding of his face.

Former soldier Wayne Ingram, who first spotted the boy while on patrol, organised a fresh appeal to help pay for expenses associated with the latest treatment.

It came after Stefan, who has had three previous operations, was admitted to a Bosnian hospital last August with breathing problems and sinusitis.

Stefan pictured in 2003

Mr Dunaway said: “This operation was really about reconstructing his nose and improving his nasal airway.

“His nose was very wide and he basically didn’t have a tip to it at all.

“We took cartilage from one rib, fashioned it into the shape of a nose, then used it to reconstruct his nose.

“This will allow him to breathe more easily and eat more easily. It will improve his speech and he will look much more like the rest of us.

“To have the opportunity to greet him again and finish it off so he can lead a normal life and not worry about these things is just great.”

Stefan now faces one more operation on his nose and orthodontics to realign his teeth before one final surgical procedure to correct the roof of his mouth.

PA

A four-year-old Stefan with sergeant Ingram and his mum Slavenka

Wayne, 44, from Weymouth, Dorset, said: “It wasn’t just the money – Stefan’s family were inundated with good luck messages from across Scotland.

“I know his mother and aunt read every single one.”

His aunt Dzejna Milakovic-Ramadani said: “Stefan and his mum and dad would really like to thank the Scottish people for their kindness.